mc2hill

Rick,
 
I live in central PA as well and you are right about the humidity. I have found when the weather is as humid as it is the product will take longer to work. I believe you dealing with several issues. The polishes have oils in them that help lubricate surface of the clearcoat allowing the polishes and pad to safely remove the scratches, swirls, etc. Flashing occurs when the oils are broken down and no longer working. The polish almost will have almost a Vaseline consistency. Also you will start to see streaks of clear in the area you are working. You are better off under polishing then to over polish. If you over polish you could damage the paint.
 
Only correct a 2x2 area. I work in a criss-cross pattern. I usually make about 5 passes over the section. I always go slow.
After each section I clean my pad with a pad brush. This removes all the old polish and helps the pad work better.
I then spray the pad with a squirt of detail spray which helps keep it from drying out.
Initially (when I first start) I cover the entire pad with polish and begin. After I have done a panel I just apply a small amount of product around the edges and middle.
I also always remove the Paint Correcting Polish before using the Finishing Polish just because I want to see how it looks.
How long are you letting the polish on the paint after you are done polishing? I have found that if I do a section and not remove it right away it becomes hard to remove. How big an area are you doing? When the polish is hard to remove try a shot of detail spray on the area.
 
Lots of variables. Humidity being one. The amount of product, drying time, cleaning the pad are others. Are you done with your vehicle yet?

Very cool Jon, and congrats again!

After seeing several threads about this I thought I would put up a poll.
 
 

1987 Trans am GTA
1992 Poniac Trans sport van ( Dirt Devil) 
2001 ws6 Trans am
2002 dodge durango 
2004 Audi A6
2008 Scion xb
2009 Jeep wrangler
2014 Ram 1500
2002 ws6 Trans am

Hey guys. First and for most I want to thank all of you for your help along the way. I went from a "weekend" 1 bucket washer to owning every adams product there is within a matter of a couple months. Now it's time to reveal my months of hard work
 
My Trans am is a 2002 ws6 with 30,000 miles. When I first purchased her, she was filled with dirt and swirls. Now she looks like a new car.
 
I wish I had better before pics but you have to trust me when I say that she was DIRTY. I started out with the engine bay and used Adams All Purpose Cleaner. Let it sit and soak for about 20 mins. Then scrubbed like crazy. Dressed with Adams in and out spray. 
 

 
Next was the full correction. The car was insanely swirled. I used Adams 2 step correct and polish. Took around 10 hours to fully correct it so that there wasn't a swirl left. I used the flex.
 

 
Next was removing the clear coat on the wheels and buffing out the aluminum using ADAMS 2 step medal polish. 
 

 
Cleaned the interior with adams leather conditioner,in and out spray,leather cleaner,carpet cleaner,total interior spray,glass cleaner. All ADAMs products all the time!! Turned out new looking. 

 
Lastly, I used adams sealer, glaze, buttery wax and tire shine to finish her off. With helps from adams ( and a $1000 worth of their products) I was able to turn this old bird around to a show piece. I seriously can't find one imperfection now

 

 
Oh yea, did the truck too 

Picked up one of these SM Arnold detailing brushes for this technique instead of using my Lug Nut Brush:

^^^Welll...I try to tell her it's not that little...and I feel for ya Diesel!
 
 
Oh!  You mean my wheel stud guide!  LOL!  Yeah, I won't work on any car with lug bolts without one.  Makes it so much easier and safer to take the wheels on/off!

Thanks Dylan... figured as much. It sure was easy to apply but it was kinda weird working with the truck wet. Regardless, the truck came out looking great. I used about a 1/4 of the bottle on my truck and topped it off with a coat of Patriot.
 

I'm with Dylan.  While the XLR is cool, that El Camino is the great!

Oh, you mean the mourning dove that sits on the garage roof and has been known to crap on the car WHILE it is being washed...yeah that little ****** is why I like chicken,turkey, grouse, game hens, quail, pheasant, duck, goose, eggs. It wouldn't make much of a meal but it is tempting sometimes.

Every year in my town (Greenville Texas) we have a memorial golf tournament called Monster Ball. The tournament celebrates the life of one of the greatest guys you could ever meet that was killed in a skiing accident in Colorado. I will post below the caption from the website of the tournament for better understanding for you the reader of this topic.
 
Craig Bowers was tragically killed on March 14, 2012 in a snow skiing accident
while on vacation with his family in Crested Butte, Colorado. He was an amazing
husband, father, son, brother, uncle and friend to many. We love and miss him very
much, and he will always be in our hearts and minds. He brought so much joy and
laughter to all of us whose lives he touched. He will forever be remembered for his
love for people and love for life. He lived life to the fullest everyday. His competitive
and aggressive nature is what made him who he was. This awesome quality could be what
ultimately lead to his death, but I promise you this, he would not have changed that
aggressive nature even if he knew his life would be cut short. His shortened life was so
much more fulfilled due to his desire and will to go 110% all the time.

As you all know, Craig was an avid golfer when he was not being an Assistant Principal
at Royse City High School. So in order to appropriately celebrate his memory, we are
going to host an annual memorial golf tournament called Monster Ball. All proceeds will
go to the non-profit foundation, The Craig Bowers Memorial Foundation, which was created
by his family and close friends. It will be a great opportunity to give back to our
community while enjoying golf with friends. Our first annual tournament proceeds will
benefit Greenville YMCA, a scholarship set up for a Royse City ISD and Greenville ISD
graduating senior, and the Hunt County Crisis Center of Greenville.

We would like to extend our tremendous gratitude to our sponsors, players and volunteers.
Together we can make a difference in many kids lives throughout our community.

Love, Kim Bowers and family
 
 
Now that you have a better understanding I will explain why I am so thankful for Adam's Polishes as a whole. This year I have given my extra free time to try and help out to raise more money for the scholarship fund by getting items for the silent auction at the tournament. Well, what better of a way than to ask a company that I am quite fond of, and seems to always have a helping hand when someone is in need of support? I spoke with Matt on phone yesterday about the possibility of maybe some small samples of product or anything for that matter for the silent auction. I was blown away, I mean BLOWN AWAY at what happened next. Not only was he great to deal with like normal, he helped out more than I ever expected. Heading my way for our silent auction is 1 Adam's essential detail kit, and 2 Adams Basic Car Care Kits. Thank you SO MUCH for everything you keep doing for the car community and the support that is always offered no matter what the circumstance is. There is not a better company ANYWHERE!
 
God Bless- Tyler Nicholson

After posting pics of my detailing cart in this thread; http://www.adamsforums.com/topic/28391-setting-up-the-ideal-home-detailing-garage/ I decided to make a thread of its own.
 
Here is a list of the things I used to make the cart:
 
One 45 In. x 24 In. Polypropylene Industrial Service Cart from Harbor Freight ($135)
Two 5 gallon buckets from Ace Hardware ($3 each)
Two Gamma bucket lids from Lowe's ($8 each)
Two Grit Guard inserts ($9 each)
 
Tools:
Jigsaw
RotoZip
Tape measure (I used a tailor's type)
Marker
 

 
I first needed to know how big to make the holes. I measured the circumference of the bucket right under the lowest lip.
 

 
My measurement was 35.375". I divided that by pi to get the diameter of my holes, 11.26" (I just went with 11.25"). Then I found the center of my hole making sure I left 1" from the sides of the cart.
 


 
I can't show a pic of the next step since it involves cutting the hole, but I used the Jigsaw to cut what I could. The hole was too close to the sides for the saw to go all the way around so I had to finish with the RotoZip. You could come another inch from the sides if needed. I didn't realize the saw wouldn't make it all the way around until it was too late lol.
 

 
I had to trim a little more to get the buckets to fit. I wanted them to be a snug fit so you can see how much I have to push them down here:
 


 
That's pretty much it! There's plenty of room under the cart for other buckets and stools:
 

 
If anyone needs more info I will be happy to oblige!

I usually start with the MF or a very aggressive foam pad on the drill.  That way I can skip sanding most times.  You have to be careful with the drill though, as the you essentially are using a rotary polisher.  Keep it moving, and don't let the pad dry out.  

^Matt you have a good plan of attack.
 
My Microfiber regimen:
-Heavy wash cycle (longest running), Hot water, cool/warm rinse (I put some white vinegar in the fabric softener tray, about 2 oz)
-2 oz of dedicated Microfiber Detergent on a large load, 1 oz on a medium load (MFR would work well)
-If your towels are extremely greasy or soily, soak them in a bucket of hot water and a few oz of APC to loosen up the grime before washing, alternatively you can pre-treat with MFR or APC and hot water in the slop sink, before tossing in the washing machine
-Drying - I always use low heat on my dryer, for 30-40 mins tops, as the towels are only damp after the wash anyway, no fabric sheets
 
Some towels I have been washing over 2 years and still come out like new each time, they may have a few stains but they are clean.  I've noticed Chinese Microfiber is a bit more durable than Korean Microfiber in regards to greasier/tough jobs, but Korean microfiber is overall softer
 
Yes the Microfiber Applicator pads are fine to put in the dryer, I also put my Microfiber hardwood floor mop pads in with the towels and in the dryer as well

Just going to drop this in here to add to the discussion. It was more of an experiment with Dawn dishsoap, but it also shows what using IPA does or doesn't do as well.
 
http://imgur.com/a/YkEYv
 
Not my work, but I came across it a few weeks back.

Either towel will absorb water.
 
I am curious if you are doing a "pooling rinse" prior to drying?
 
I can remove around 85% of the water left on the car using this technique, which leaves very little surface water to get off after washing. 1 spray of Adams Detail Spray per panel takes care of the rest, so the only areas that require air are the one's the towel can't get to.
 
Here is a video of Adam and Dylan doing this and explaining it. It will save you a LOT of drying time.
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGFSJveN_6Y

Me and my girls

5/30/15 update:
 
Started out with breakfast out on the terrace...overlooking a Porsche show on the lawn!  It was nice! 
 
Caravanned into Asheville.  We went to the very cool and well known Grove Park Inn, built in 1913, it is spectacular!  HUGE fireplaces, great terrace to have lunch on, and a very nice historic place to visit.  We had a private tour setup for the antique car museum and craftsmanship shops/workshops/galleries on site. 
 
Next up we got to tour the Highlands Brewing Corp's Brewery and Troy and Son's distillery today!  Very cool!!!  We had about 42 cars with us this day for this trip.  This was my first tour of a brewery and a distillery.  It was really neat!  And we got to sample the wares!  LOL
 
This was the last day of the event and we finished up the day/night with a Hawaiian Luau themed dinner!  Good fun, good friends, and some good fun!
 
Packed it in early and headed back to the cabin to clean up, pack up and get ready to head South today...we left around 0600 and got home around 730 tonight.  13.5 hours.  Uneventful travel day...which is good!
 
Total mileage for the entire trip was around 2650 miles.  Not bad for our first 'big' road trip in a 'fun' car!
 
Tomorrow has a full day of cleaning up the 911 scheduled. 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 
Thanks for following!  We had a great time, and I enjoyed sharing our epic adventure with everyone!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Your truck still looks great Rich!

I got the car back home safely and im going to get detailing it over the next 2 days.
 
This car is absolute bonkers. It sounds like its always pissed and ready to rip your face off and acceleration is breathtaking. No matter what rpm or speed when you want more it give it to you in spades.
 
I give props to the srt boys.. The Hellcat motor is a beast.

It was a great day for a show! That is until it rained on the way home  I washed the car the day before. I have a recent coat of Adams Americana on so I was good to go. Once at there I did my pre- show prep with diluted Rinseless Wash in spray bottles and blue waffle weave towels. I also use the Rinseless to clean the wheels. I applied SVRT to the tires. I should have took some pictures of the towels. I am always amazed at how much dirt gets on the lower half of the car even when you do not go far.
 

 
I was able to park next to another Hellcat. We were the only Mopars at the show. We had a great time and made some new friends which is really what this is all about.
 

The idea was for blank labels like the ones that come on the empty bottles, not actual product labels.
 
Selling Blank Labels is not that different from selling the empty bottles with blank labels on them.

^^^LOL man!  Yeah....I think it has my name on it!